http://www.powernaturally.org/Programs/SchoolPowerNaturally/InTheClassroom/kitlessons.asp?i=9#Lesson1 Students experiment with a selection of solar panels, lamps, motors, and a AA battery to get as many motors or lights to operate as they can in the time period alloted. For each success, they draw a diagram of their setup and label the energy source used and the different forms of energy found throughout the arrangement. This website also has many other lesson plans that can be used with solar panels.
Tina Gibson:
http://www.ed.uiuc.edu/YLP/96-97/96-97_curriculum_units/Electricity_KPelak/electricity1.html This is a great simple and small lesson plan that could be used to introduce the topic of electricity. It has students list all the things in their house that use electricity. They then get into groups and make a group list of the things they use daily, weekly, and monthly from their list. As a group they then graph their data to show what items they use the most and how much electricity they use everyday. I think by doing this lesson plan it allows students to really get interested in electricity before beginning the topic.
http://www.ed.uiuc.edu/YLP/96-97/96-97_curriculum_units/Electricity_KPelak/electricity3.html In this lesson plan students will be split into small groups and given a container with all the supplies needed to make a light bulb light up. With out any instruction, students would be allowed 20 minutes to try to get the light bulb to work. Once they get it to light up they draw a diagram of how they made it work. They will also record the ways that did not work. Students will draw a conclusion, from their results, about what is required for they bulb to light up.
http://www.abc.net.au/science/surfingscientist/pdf/lesson_plan11.pdf This lesson is very similar to the lesson above. However, with this lesson students will learn more about conductors. They will discover what is a great conductor and what is a poor conductor. The teacher will allow them to discover what makes a light bulb brighter and dimmer while giving out hints throughout the class. They will then, as a class, discuss what items were good and poor conductors.
Solar Panels- Tina Gibson:
http://www1.eere.energy.gov/education/pdfs/solar_energyfromsunguideteacher.pdf This is a great lesson plan that not only teaches about solar panels, but it teaches about sun energy and all of the thing it is used for. I think this is a great lesson plan because students often think that electricity can only be made by a battery of some sort. This lesson plan has many activities that show different ways that energy can be made.
http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/Educational/NCKidsSolarAct-1.pdf In this lesson plan the teacher would have students bring very used batteries from home. We would see how strong they are by seeing how bright they will light the bulb. Students could then hook solar panels to them to re-charge the battery. This would be a great activity for students to learn about electrical currents as well as solar panels and sun energy.
http://mypages.iit.edu/~smile/ph9508.html This lesson lets the students work with circuits by first letting them explore the batteries and light bulbs themselves, then continuing to show them how to make a correct circuit and what a circuit is.
http://mypages.iit.edu/~smile/ph8917.html This lesson shows students the importance of electricity and teaches them basic electrical terms. It also works with closed ciruits, and parallel circuits. It also incorporates switches into the ciruits and a hands on activity to show how the circuits work.
http://www.switchedonkids.org.uk/ This website has videos about what electricity is, where it comes from, and many safety videos. It also has quizzes and games that would be very fun. There is also a place that has information for parents and teachers.
http://energyquest.ca.gov/index.html This website is a very interactive website. It has many movies and books about electricity. It also shows many ways electricity is used.
http://www.andythelwell.com/blobz/ This a very educational website about electrical currents. It has detailed descriptions of how electricity works in a kid-friendly way.
Lesson Plans-
Jessica Harper
Tina Gibson:
Solar Panels- Tina Gibson:
Mindy Bailey:
Websites
Jessica Harper
Tina Gibson:
Mindy Bailey